Please help a pre-nursing student out with a class project!

ICAN! · Feb 23, 2009

I'm hoping to be in nursing school this next Fall myself and am curious about the answers you might receive. Great questions!

dorimar, BSN, RN · Feb 23, 2009

I will try to PM you with this.

dorimar, BSN, RN · Feb 23, 2009

Maria 895,

I private messaged you with the answers. I couldn't find a way to attach, so I had to copy and paste. Iwould only let me send so many characters at a time, so I had to divide the messages into several differnet private messages. Your box was full and I couldn't send you the last three answers. Here are the last three answers. Please PM me if you need anything else!

13. What was the hardest part of nursing school? Clinicals, passing the NCLEX, or something else?

For me, the hardest part of nursing school were the clinicals because it was so foreign to me. I was sooo green and did not have a clue. I don’t adapt to change well and have trouble learning in a non-supportive environment, and I felt threatened by many of the nurses and even some instructors.

14. Is the NCLEX as hard as everyone says it is? Why or why not?

NCLEX was a long time ago for me. If I remember correctly it was tough, but my nursing school prepared us well because they tested us the same way all though our program. The questions were tough because you had to pick the best answer or the best priority. The answers may have all been correct. They are multiple choice questions, but they are at the level of application, analysis, and evaluation on Blooms taxonomy (not just remembering).

15. Would you subscribe to any nursing magazines – if so, what ones?

I subscribe to Critical Care Nurse, AJCC (American Journal of Critical Care), and RN. I think subscribing and reading nursing journals are a good way to stay current and knowledgeable in our practice.

widi96 · Feb 23, 2009

Questions for Nursing Interview:

1. What is the best aspect of nursing?

2. What is the worst aspect of nursing?

I have two for this one . . one would be those nights that you realize you can't fix everything. The patient who desperately wants to live, but there is nothing we can do to prevent the inevitable.

The other would be those pts and family members who still think that big H in front of the hospital stands for Hilton. They can make work almost unbearable at times.

3. What is the single most important attribute someone should have to make a good nurse? Is it patience, compassion, smarts, or something else?

Can I choose all of the above? It does take all to be a great nurse - I think first and foremost you would want the smarts, because the reason people are there are because they are ill and I would definitely want someone who is going to notice the subtle changes and their significance and do something about it. If you want to be a good nurse in the eyes of the patient though you have to have the patience and compassion. But again, nowadays nursing is about holistic care, so if you don't have the compassion and time to listen to the pt, you aren't taking care of everything.

4. Is Med-Surg. really as hard as everyone says? Even if you’re not working in this field of nursing, could you please draw on your experience from Med-Surg. clincals during nursing school. If it is hard, why?

In my opinion med-surg can be hard because of the high nurse-pt ratios. It is very hard to find time to do anything. Other than that, I didn't think it was that bad.

5. In your opinion, what field of nursing is the most physically and/or mentally/emotionally draining?

Mentally and emotionally for me would probably be Oncology or hospice. It takes magnificant people to deal with death as frequently as they do and with the dignity in which they deal with it.

6. Do doctors and patients usually treat nurses with the respect they deserve?

50/50. There are docs who understand it is their job to be woken up in the middle of the night when their pt needs something and there are those who will snip at the nurses for waking them. Patients are the same - there are those who will be overly gracious for the care provided, there are still those that say please and thank you for things you do for them, then there are those that I mentioned earlier that still think the hospital is a Hilton. And in some cases, if they are in a hospital they are immune to the law. We have had a couple of cases recently with nurses being assaulted (mainly verbal threats, but the occassional physical).

7. In your opinion, what is harder: Nursing school or actually working as a nurse? Why?

Nursing School - because I always felt like I was on one of my first days of orientation, I never knew what I should / could be doing or where anything was or who I could ask. That plus being unfamiliar with different equipment, charting, etc. Not to mention some nursing instructors can be very intimidating about what you do / don't know about your patient and all of their meds, labs, etc.

8. What is the important skill/attribute someone should have to do well in nursing school? Good time management, good memorization abilities, or something else?

Time management is extremely important. Memorization will only get you so far - you have actually apply the knowledge that you have memorized. Nursing school will drill that Critical Thinking aspect into everyone.

9. In your opinion, what is the best field to go into in nursing?

It all depends on the person. In our area, nursing hasn't been hit yet by the economy, although if it were, I can see elective procedures being the first to get hit. It takes a special person for all fields - some nurses love OB, I could not get far enough away from that unit, some can do Hospice, and bless them for having the ability to do that and help those in that trying time. I thought all I ever wanted to be was an ER nurse - but I have been a tele nurse since I graduated and enjoy it.

10. How do other nurses get along, and how do they tend to treat the newer/younger nurses?

It depends. We had a couple of older nurses who had been in the field for awhile who would dump on everyone else, but they are few and far between. For the most part I think we get along very well. As for brand new nurses - my advice would be - don't be afraid to ask questions. Most everyone that I am aware of is more than willing to help.

11. What is the most rewarding experience you’ve had being a nurse? Graduating, helping a patient, or something else?

Well, graduating was great and made me feel much better about myself. One of the most rewarding experiences would've been reading a letter from the family of a pt who had passed away and how greatful they were for the care their loved one had received. It's in those moments that you know you made a difference.

12. If you had one piece of advice to give to a pre-nursing student, like myself, what would it be?

Get a job in a hospital as soon as you can! Some hospitals offer a every other weekend secretary position that would be great, then once you've finished Fundamentals you can challenge to take your CNA. Being a secretary familiarizes you with the chart, what gets ordered with what and dosages of medications (I know I got one right on the NCLEX because of that). Being a CNA helps with the patient aspect of everything and makes you much more comfortable in the hospital environment.

13. What was the hardest part of nursing school? Clinicals, passing the NCLEX, or something else?

Surviving those classes that you absolutely hate. As in, the clinical areas that you know you have no desire to go into. When you don't care for the subject matter it makes it much harder to convince yourself to study for and that you need to know it.

14. Is the NCLEX as hard as everyone says it is? Why or why not?

No. But I don't get nervous for testing. But I also felt well prepared. I had worked in a hospital for 5 years, I had gotten good grades in nursing school, I took it as soon as I could after graduation and I felt like I was ready. For those who get test anxiety, I can understand it being pretty overwhelming.

15. Would you subscribe to any nursing magazines – if so, what ones?

I don't. When I worked in the ER as a tech I joined the ENA and their magazine was ok. I'm sure there are probably those out there that are worth while, but I haven't come across one yet, but I also haven't looked hard at all.

hearts895, RN BSN · Feb 24, 2009

Thank you so so much widi96! I really appreciate it and I thank you so much for all the information and taking your time to type all this out! This will really help me so thanks a million!:heartbeat:D

hearts895, RN BSN · Feb 24, 2009

Thanks so much everyone for all of your responses! I really appreciate it - you all have saved me with regards to my project and you've all given me such fascinating information to think about. As usual, everyone on Allnurses.com is so kind and helpful! Thank you everyone! :heartbeat:bow::tku::[anb]: